The Values of Fame: Exploring the Visual and Textual Representations of Basic Values in Influencers’ Instagram Content

Despite the popularity of social media influencers (SMIs), little is known about how their content reflects and conveys certain values, leaving a gap in understanding their role as value intermediaries. This content analysis examined the representation of Schwartz values in the Instagram profiles of 59 of the most followed Western SMIs, celebrities, and athletes. Relying on 1256 posts and 2936 stories, the study documented the prevalence of values, modalities of representations (multimodal complexity and post-caption congruence), and differences between SMIs, athletes, and celebrities. Results revealed that 60.3% of the content portrayed at least one value, with achievement, benevolence, and hedonism being the most frequent. Multilevel analyses indicated that SMIs and athletes were more likely to post hedonism and benevolence, while celebrities were more likely to share universalism than SMIs. Most values were represented through low to medium levels of multimodal complexity, and only 15.3% showed post-caption congruence. These findings underscore the need to document how global digital platforms and actors mediate value representation, as they have the potential to shape audience values and cultural norms.